Thursdays With Spurgeon—Top Priority

June 16, 2022 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Charles Spurgeon. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Spurgeon” in the search box to read more entries.

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible. 

Top Priority

…For the mouth of the Lord has spoken (Isaiah 1:20).

     Every word that God has given us in the Bible claims our attention because of the infinite majesty of Him who spoke it. … See that you refuse not Him who speaks. O my hearer, let it not be said of you that you went through this life, God speaking to you in His book, and you refusing to hear! It matters very little whether you listen to me or not. But it matters a very great deal whether you listen to God or not. It is He who made you. In His hands is your breath. And if He speaks, I implore you, open your ears and be not rebellious. There is an infinite majesty about every line of Scripture, but especially about that part of Scripture in which the Lord reveals Himself and His glorious plan of saving grace in the Person of His dear Son Jesus Christ. …  

     For what He has spoken He still speaks to us, as freshly as if He spoke it for the first time. … 

     God’s Word has a claim, then, upon your attention because of its majesty and its condescension. But, further, it should win your ear because of its intrinsic importance. ‘The mouth of the Lord has spoken,’ so it is no trifle. God never speaks vanity. No line of His writing treats of the frivolous themes of the day. That which may be forgotten in an hour is for mortal man and not for the eternal God. When the Lord speaks, His speech is Godlike, and its themes are worthy of one who is dwelling in infinity and eternity. … 

     He speaks to you of great things that have to do with your soul and its destiny. It is not a vain thing for you, because it is your life. Your eternal existence, your happiness or your misery, hang on your treatment of that which the mouth of the Lord has spoken. … Treat not the Word of the Lord as a secondary thing that might wait your leisure and receive attention when no other work is before you. Put all else aside and hearken to your God.

From The Infallibility Of Scripture

Charles Spurgeon is so on-target with these words. Believe it or not, this sermon was actually delivered to his fellow pastors. But the words are true for all of us—we must make listening to God’s Word our first priority. 

Every single word of Scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit. And I do mean every single word. Even the order in which the words are listed is inspired. So when you read your Bible, ask the Holy Spirit—the Author of the text—to illuminate the words to you. Ask questions like:

  • What did that mean then? 
  • What does it mean now? 
  • What does it mean for me? 
  • Does something in my life need to change? 

If you make your time with God a priority, He will reveal more of Himself to you each time you open your Bible.

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The Danger In Multitasking

March 8, 2022 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible. 

Peter Drucker noted, “It wasn’t until the twentieth-century that we pluralized the word priority. For most of its history, the word has been singular.” 

If we have too many priorities, we can frequently find them in conflict with each other. This forces us to make an extremely difficult decision: Which priority has a higher priority?! 

My friend Greg Heeres and I recently addressed this in an episode of our leadership podcast called The Craig And Greg Show.  

Ultimately, whatever business or industry or profession we are in, we are in the people business. All of our efforts fail without good investment in people. So our overriding priority must be on the people God has placed around us.

(I wrote post earlier about this called “Am I interruptible?” which is worth your time to check out.)

Marcus Buckingham noted, 

“The human brain is simply not designed to multitask. You can get by doing multiple things at once, but you can’t do them well. Your brain is physically unable to process more than one set of instructions at a time, so while you are juggling all of those actions at once, your brain is scrambling to keep up. Through a variety of experiments measuring brain activity, scientists have discovered that the constant switching back and forth from one activity to another energizes regions of the brain that specialize in visual processing and physical coordination, while simultaneously disrupting the brain regions related to memory and learning. According to the research, ‘We are using our mental energy to concentrate on concentrating at the expense of whatever it is that we’re supposed to be concentrating on.’ Got that? 

“More simply: when we multitask we’re dumber. How much dumber? A recent study for Hewlett Packard exploring the impact of multitasking on performance revealed that the average worker’s functioning IQ drops ten points when multitasking…. (The analogy the researchers used is that a ten-point drop in IQ is equivalent to missing one night of sleep.)” —Marcus Buckingham  

The biggest victim of attempting to multitask is your relationships. Those closest to you suffer the most. If someone needs me and I’m too busy to give them me, then very busy has become too busy and it’s time for me to evaluate who—not what—is my highest priority.

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Thursdays With Spurgeon—The Natural Out-Gushing

March 3, 2022 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Charles Spurgeon. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Spurgeon” in the search box to read more entries.

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible. 

The Natural Out-Gushing

If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (John 15:7) 

   He does not say, ‘If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will do spiritual things,’ but ‘you will ask.’ By prayer you will be enabled to do. But before all attempts to do, you will ask. The choice privilege here given is a mighty prevailing prayerfulness. Power in prayer is very much the gauge of our spiritual condition. …  

     Prayer comes spontaneously from those who abide in Jesus. … Prayer is the natural out-gushing of a soul in communion with Jesus. Just as the leaf and the fruit will come out of the vine without any conscious effort on the part of the branch but simply because of its living union with the stem, so prayer buds and blossoms and produces fruit out of souls abiding in Jesus. … They do not say to themselves, ‘Now is the time for us to get to our task and pray.’ No, they pray as wise men eat—namely, when the desire for it is upon them. …  

     Habitual asking comes out of abiding in Christ. You will not need urging to pray when you are abiding with Jesus. … 

     ‘If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask’—and you will not wish to cease from asking. He has said, ‘Seek My face,’ and your heart will answer, ‘Your face, Lord, I will seek’ (Psalm 27:8). … 

     This power in prayer is like the sword of Goliath. Wisely may every David say, ‘There is none like it; give it to me’ (1 Samuel 21:9). This weapon of all-prayer beats the enemy and at the same time enriches its possessor with all the wealth of God.

 From The Secret Of Power In Prayer

When I first met the beautiful young lady that would eventually become my wife, we spent hours and hours and hours talking with each other. It was how I got to know her heart, and how she got to know mine. My conversations with Betsy are still some of the most cherished times I have. 

But what if after we got married I said to Betsy, “I love you, my darling, and I’m so looking forward to a lifetime with you! I will make it a priority to give you my undivided attention for 90 minutes every Sunday morning. Other than that, I’ll be thinking about you while I go about my busy life.” How intimate is this relationship going remain? 

Sadly, this is how many Christians treat their relationship with Jesus. “Thank You for saving me from the penalty of my sin, Jesus! I love You and I’m so looking forward to an eternity with You in Heaven. I will make it a priority to give You my undivided attention every week at church. Other than that, I’ll be thinking about You while I go about my busy life.” 

This is not abiding. 

No branch can remain healthy and produce any fruit if it is only occasionally attached to the vine. In order for the branch to be fruitful, it must be continually abiding in the life-giving sap of the vine. 

Intimacy with Jesus means abiding with Him at all times. It means engaging in conversation with Him at all times. Brother Lawrence commented, “The time of business does not with me differ from the time of prayer; and in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were upon my knees at the blessed sacrament.” 

My friend, let’s all seek to become more aware of the closeness of Jesus. Let us “take delight in the Lord” (Psalm 37:4) and continually engage Him in intimate conversation. As we do, the fruitfulness of our prayer life cannot help but blossom into beautiful things that give God great joy and glory.

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Podcast: A Leader’s Top Priority

February 8, 2022 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the audio-only version of this podcast by clicking on the player below, or scroll down to watch the video.

On this episode of “The Craig And Greg Show” we talk about: 

  • [0:38] What are the origins of the word “priority” and why should priority be singular and not plural? 
  • [0:56] Is it true that multi-tasking increases efficiency? 
  • [2:52] Greg tells a story about shopping with his parents.
  • [3:55] Greg reminds us that the devil uses distraction as a tool.
  • [5:04] I talk about how leaders should set their first priority.
  • [6:32] Why is it so hard to invest in unavailable people?
  • [7:58] I explain how leaders can make time for their “have to” list.
  • [9:58] Greg loves “StrengthFinders” and how it helps leaders learn to work in their strength zone.
  • [10:52] We discuss the book No Is A Beautiful Word.
  • [12:42] How can leaders use the priority vs. priorities paradigm to create margin in their life?
  • [14:36] We throw out the “Not-To-Do List Challenge” for leaders.

Check out this episode and subscribe on YouTube so you can watch all of the upcoming episodes. You can also listen to our podcast on Spotify and Apple.

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Links & Quotes

February 4, 2022 — Craig T. Owens

“While grief is expressed in words, its resolution is in God and the hope He gives for the future. In a way, the lamentation process is one of coming to grips with all that God wants us to see about our present circumstances.” —Dr. Henry Halley

Welsh dinosaur tracks found in flood rocks: “The evidence continues to stack up in support of the global Flood. The rocks don’t lie!”

In this video, J. Warner Wallace addresses how we can reconcile variations between biblical manuscripts.

My friend Greg Heeres and I have a brand new episode in our leadership podcast called The Craig And Greg Show. This discussion is all about setting good priorities.

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Leaders Lead At Home

December 21, 2021 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible. 

On a recent episode of The Craig And Greg Show, Greg and I discussed the vitally important role of leading in our families. 

Most parents know they should do this, but one of the things that gets in the way is trying to determine just how “success” should be defined in a family setting. 

Greg and I talk about the distractions to meaningful interactions with our spouse and kids, and I share a story about how I helped my church board understand this concept so that they could support me in this.

The bottom line: Someone else can do our jobs, but we are the only ones who can be the godly spouse for our husband or wife, and the godly parent for kids. Let’s make sure this is always our priority! 

If you would like to watch this full episode of The Craig And Greg Show, please click here. And if you would like to know more about my book which I mentioned in this podcast, please click here. 

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Still Being Fashioned

June 30, 2021 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible. 

Psalm 119 is a fascinating chapter of Scripture. Not only is it the longest chapter in the Bible (at 176 verses) but it is divided into twenty-two 8-verse sections, corresponding with the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Each of the verses in the different sections all begin with the same Hebrew letter of that section. 

In the section called yodh, the psalmist wrote, “Your hands formed me and made me; give me understanding to learn Your commands” (v. 73). There is just one Hebrew word for “Your hands” and it also happens to be the name of this section of Psalm 119: Yodh. The psalmist sees God’s hands all over his life, and he welcomes God’s continued involvement in every aspect of his life. 

This yodh section is presented to us in alternating verses: the odd-numbered verses are a declaration, and the even-numbered verses are a corresponding prayer. It looks something like this…

Declaration: You made me

Prayer: May I be a hope-filled testimony to others by my reverence of You

Declaration: You continually discipline and fashion me

Prayer: May I continually find my comfort in Your unfailing love

Declaration: Your compassion is my life and my delight

Prayer: May You deal with those who afflict me while I remain focused on You

Declaration: You bring people into my life on purpose

Prayer: May I be a blameless witness of Your love

In light of this section I declare in prayer: “God, You created me on purpose and for a purpose. What You create, You complete; and what You complete, You complete perfectly. May I remain sensitive to Your Holy Spirit and malleable to Your touch, so that You are glorified through my obedient life.” 

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Be A First Responder

January 5, 2021 — Craig T. Owens

There is a line in an old hymn that convicts me every time I sing it: “Oh, what peace we often forfeit; Oh, what needless pain we bear all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.” 

Why are we so slow to drop to our knees in prayer when trouble strikes? It seems we fool ourselves into thinking the problem is small enough to handle on our own, or we think God isn’t concerned with something that may seem trivial, or we’ve been-here-done-this before and know the way to go. But this isn’t what our Heavenly Father desires; instead, He wants us to come to Him before we try anything else. 

Instead of making prayer our last resort, why don’t we strive to make it our first response! 

Join me as we begin our series on prayer called Be A First Responder. We will be learning the value of praying fast and praying often, and we will see how being a prayer first-responder will benefit those around us too. 

If you have missed any of the messages in this series, you can check them out here:

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Poetry Saturday—If We Had But A Day

June 27, 2020 — Craig T. Owens
We should fill the hours with the sweetest things,
   If we had but a day;
We should drink alone at the purest springs
   In our upward way;
We should love with a lifetime’s love in an hour,
   If the hours were a few;
We should rest, not for dreams, but for fresher power
   To be and to do.


We should guide our wayward or wearied wills


   By the clearest light;


We should keep our eyes on the heavenly hills,


   If they lay in sight;


We should trample the pride and the discontent


   Beneath our feet;


We should take whatever a good God sent,


   With a trust complete.




We should waste no moments in weak regret,


   If the day were but one;


If what we remember and what we forget


   Went out with the sun;


We should be from our clamorous selves set free,


   To work or to pray,


And to be what the Father would have us be,


   If we had but a day. —Mary Lowe Dickinson








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More Of Christ

June 15, 2020 — Craig T. Owens 




“Preacher and people, we need more of Christ. More of Christ would make that sad home bright, that wavering soul steadfast, that breaking heart happy, that mourning spirit glad, that burdened conscience light, that selfish nature generous, and make those who are parted in enmity stand with clasped and forgiving hands. More of Christ would smite down sectarian walls and win outcasts to the fold. More of Christ is what we all want in our hearts and homes, in our business and politics, in our schools and universities, in our churches and pulpits.” —Canon James Fleming






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